I
was pleasantly surprised at how good Project: Snowblind
turned out to be. It shows what you can do with the
shooter premise if you have just the right amount
of imagination and talented programmers to realize
that vision.

The
future is a great place to explore since it doesn't
have to follow any rules of any kind. It's a blank
slate for the imagination to go wild, yet at the same
time it comes with a built in template that can be
tweaked at will. Project: Snowblind chooses to embellish
the template of present society and explore the unstable
relationships of countries with advanced technical
capabilities that are used for evil.

Nathan
Frost is the protagonist of the story. He's a highly
trained solider skilled in the art of future combat
which see him battling bots and other technologies
with an assortment of weapons, gadgets and advanced
thinking. It's a combination of having all these controls
on hand and doing some rapid on-the-spot puzzle solving
that really makes the game appeal to me.

There's
not much for a story but that's no excuse to throw
in a bunch of unrelated elements just to make the
gameplay more varied like some games do. Snowblind
manages to maintain the essence of the campaign throughout
the game. Everything is related to the story as well
as the look and feel of the gameplay. I won't directly
compare it to Splinter Cell but it lives in the same
neighborhood. There action is relentless but it's
also broken up with puzzle solving, exploring, stealth
and the use of gadgets.

Stealth
only plays a minor role here and it's not from lack
of trying. The guards in this game are some of the
smartest I've ever encountered. They're not just heavy
in numbers or hard to kill, it's the fact that they
will hunt you down wherever you may be hiding that's
unnerving. It tough to pull something over on these
baddies so that's why you have to always be ready
to shoot to kill. It doesn't matter how smart they
are if you can outgun them. You'll have turrets on
your back that will help keep you cover automatically
and well as regular weapons you can control and aim
as you run. Some missions are solo and some will involve
a team. You can't control any other characters but
they do provide a realistic portrayal of what you
might expect from such a squad as they take matters
into their own hands to combat the threats.

Enemies
range from humans to plodding mechs to various human-controlled
vehicles such as trucks and choppers loaded with firepower.
The environments are fully interactive. You can take
cover behind some obstacles but they won't be there
for long when the missiles start flying. Gadgets come
in the form of power-ups which give you various abilities
such as an electric shield and a form of bullet time
which puts everything in the game in slow motion except
you. These can get you out of tight situations but
they have to be used sparingly. With some strategy,
skill and a little bit of luck you should be able
to shoot your way out of most situations.

I
was also impressed with the crispness of the graphics
and how smooth the framerate was maintained with a
screen-full of enemies while displaying such detailed
environments. The levels are varied and interesting;
each one more fascinating than the next. The lighting
effects, particle effects and sound effects are spectacular
and even rival that of the Xbox version. Up to 16
players can go online but I have to admit that while
the single player mode is great, the online mode is
average. It seems as though it was added as an obligatory
feature.

Project:
Snowblind is a great shooter. It will keep you on
the edge of your seat. Highly recommended for either
a rental or purchase.

Preview
By Chris

Rumored
as the once titled Dues Ex: Clan Wars the game, Snowblind
is getting attention for Crystal Dynamics. The company
can use some good attention after some rough things
in the past. Now whether or not the game was meant
to be the next Dues Ex game has not been confirmed
or denied. Taking a look at the early screen shots
it does have that feel to it. Perhaps the reasons
for the early attention are the Sci-fi look of the
game and the freedom while playing the levels? It
has even been compared to the hit movie Blade Runner.
Graphically, the game is going to be at night with
that bright Neon lighted look. Maybe that is where
the game is being compared to the hit movie? Snowblind
is another FPS title; however, the game has a few
neat features that most FPS does not offer.

Details
are very limited on the story or even the basic plot,
although the game looks like it will be you and your
army against the bad guys. While looking at the screen
shots and the press releases about the game, I found
a few neat things about the game. The game will take
place in the year 2065. Players will assume the role
of Lieutenant Nathan Frost, a soldier in the liberation
Coalition. During a battle against the evil Republic,
he was severely injured and left for dead. Of course
he was not dead at all and was used for experimental
implants. Now Nathan Frost has some pretty cool abilities
and is the perfect super soldier. While he is happy
that he is still alive, he is a bit pissed that he
was used as an experiment. So he decides to use his
newly gained powers against those who gave them to
him. We don't know all of his abilities. We do know
he can turn completely invisible for up to 15 seconds
at a time, which will come in handy sneaking past
the enemies and other places.

The
game also will feature interactive elements in each
level of the game. If you see a car you can jump in
it, start the engine and run over the enemy. For good
measures you can then stop the car and use it as nice
bomb or protection from enemy fire. Players will be
able to over take the enemies gun turrets and use
them as well. The game so far sounds really decent
and again while the details are limited, we also expect
to hear more of the online modes that will also feature
some really cool features. Take a look at the early
screen shots and look closely at the detailed buildings
and other graphic effect. We will update the preview
with more game details and game features as soon as
we get them.